Flat Earther ‘Mad’ Mike Hughes killed in rocket crash

[anonymous-user]

One of the more prominent flat earth theory supporters ‘Mad’ Mike Hughes has been killed when his rocket crashed.

He had a near miss last time. But this was clearly one attempt too far.

His goal was to build a rocket capable of taking him to a high enough altitude to ‘see for himself that the Earth was flat’.


https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/mad-mike-hug...

https://www.space.com/daredevil-mad-mike-hughes-di...

[Eric Mc]

Totally predictable - and indeed predicted by many, including me, on the older thread that was running on this attempt.

Can't say I feel any great sympathy for him.

[bitchstewie]

Almost reminds me of a real life Wile E Coyote with a home made steam powered rocket

Awful way to go but I guess maybe the small consolation that he was doing something he loved.

I can't work out how in 2020 anyone can think the earth is flat though

[Pastor Of Muppets]

bhstewie said:

I can't work out how in 2020 anyone can think the earth is flat though

And especially when considering nobody has ever taken any pictires of the edges where it comes to an end .

[Dont Panic]

Thought it was April 1st for a minute.
Did he get the rocket parts from the ACME company?
Complete nutter.

[Pupp]

Sadly inevitable and perhaps even delayed against what might reasonably have been expected.

But the world is less colourful and interesting for his passing; the older I get, the more I believe it is the observation of the exploits of eccentrics and oddballs that keep the rest of us content to follow a more humdrum (but safe) existence.

And I bet he's looking down now from geostationary orbit, saying 'I just knew it was flat...!'

[mygoldfishbowl]

Did he simply crash or was his rocket sabotaged?

[saaby93]

RIP to a bloke trying to push the boundaries of rocket flight

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-5160265...

Flat earth aside

[ScotHill]

Lord Marylebone said:

His goal was to build a rocket capable of taking him to a high enough altitude to ‘see for himself that the Earth was flat’.

https://www.space.com/daredevil-mad-mike-hughes-di...

The space.com article has a denial from him that this was the reason, just that he was a daredevil who wanted to build rockets. This one was only going to take him to 1500m, he could have chartered a small plane to take him higher than that if he'd wanted to look at the (lack of) curvature.

[Blib]

mygoldfishbowl said:

Did he simply crash or was his rocket sabotaged?

[Teddy Lop]

ScotHill said:

Lord Marylebone said:

His goal was to build a rocket capable of taking him to a high enough altitude to ‘see for himself that the Earth was flat’.

https://www.space.com/daredevil-mad-mike-hughes-di...

The space.com article has a denial from him that this was the reason, just that he was a daredevil who wanted to build rockets. This one was only going to take him to 1500m, he could have chartered a small plane to take him higher than that if he'd wanted to look at the (lack of) curvature.

something doesn't quite add up "as reported", I can't see a "steam powered rocket" - so exactly what is that, stored pressure dependant on a land boiler it leaves behind? - having enough energy to carry a man to space?

[Eric Mc]

Hydrogen peroxide?

The exhaust from rocket motors that use hydrogen peroxide is largely steam.

Also, liquid oxygen/liquid hydrogen rockets chiefly produce steam as their exhaust. A good example of such an engine is the RS25 that was fitted to the Space Shuttle. Currently, the Delta 4 Heavy rocket uses liquid oxygen/liquid hydrogen as its propellants and it leaves a very clean exhaust trail.

[carl_w]

Eric Mc said:

Hydrogen peroxide?

Many years ago when I attended a rocketry competition in France there was someone there with a steam powered rocket. As someone else suggested I think it just spent several hours on the gantry with a boiler converting everything in the tank to steam and then they opened the valve and it went.

[Reciprocating mass]

His parachute popped out and ripped off shortly after take off, leaving him to free fall back to the flat earth

[motco]

As I reported on the flat earthers thread, a cruel comment said "The earth is round, but Mad Mike is flat"

[SpeedMattersNot]

Reciprocating mass said:

His parachute popped out and ripped off shortly after take off, leaving him to free fall back to the flat earth

Yeah, saw that, poor bloke didn't stand a chance. Did he make the rocket himself?

[anonymous-user]

He might have had some strange ideas, but you have to be impressed by his engineering and fabrication skills.

[ScotHill]

Some commenters on Reddit thinking he only converted to Flatearthism recently because it was only Flatearthers who would find his rockets: https://www.reddit.com/r/news/comments/f82p28/dare...

[Pesty]

Probably mentally ill person certainly delusional kills self trying to prove his delusions

Ph no sympathy.

Interesting.

[GliderRider]

Reciprocating mass said:

His parachute popped out and ripped off shortly after take off, leaving him to free fall back to the flat earth

Apart from the parachute ripping, it sounds very similar to Evel Kneivel's Snake Canyon stunt.

As the others say, if he only needed to go to 5000ft, he could have bought an Ultralight and flown that, or gone up in a light plane. I can only assume he wasn't willing to spray chemtrails, as he would have been obliged to do with an aeroplane.

Edited by GliderRider on Sunday 23 February 12:39